As charming as her smile can be, Jelena Ostapenko can tear you apart on any given day. On her day, she is arguably among the best players in the world. After all, she has beaten the best of the best, including World No. 1 Iga Swiatek at the 2023 US Open. Latvian professional tennis player Jeļena Ostapenko was born in Riga on June 8, 1997. As of September 2024, Ostapenko has eight career singles titles to her name. Additionally, she has nine doubles titles too.
An unabashed power-hitter, Jelena Ostapenko achieved a career-high singles ranking of No. 5 in March 2018 and is ranked No. 12 by the WTA as of September 2024. Some of her famous singles titles include the Eastbourne International and the Korean Open. "Penko" began playing tennis at the age of 5, when she was introduced to the sport by her first coach - her own mother.
She started her 2024 campaign on stronger notes, which included winning the Adelaide International, defeating Daria Kasatkina, Sorana Cirstea, Caroline Garcia, Marta Kostyuk, and Ekaterina Alexandrova to win her seventh and third WTA 500 title. She established a name for herself in the doubles circuit and won the Brisbane International, defeating Greet Minnen and Heather Watson in the final. To cap off the 2024 Grand Slam season, Ostapenko won the US Open doubles title alongside Lyudmyla Kichenok.
Ostapenko won her second WTA 500 title at the 2024 Linz Open after overcoming Ekaterina Alexandrova in the final match. She reached the quarterfinals in the singles and doubles competitions at the 2024 Italian Open. The duo of Elise Mertens and Hsieh Su-wei defeated her and Lyudmyla Kichenok in the 2024 Madrid Open quarterfinals. The team of Ostapenko and Lyudmyla Kichenok also advanced to the quarterfinals of the 2024 Dubai Tennis Championships and the 2024 Indian Wells Masters.
Her other achievements of 2024 include finishing runner-up at the Australian Open, where she, along with Lyudmyla Kichenok, lost to No. 2 Elise Mertens and Hsieh Su-wei by 6-1, 7-5 in the finals. The duo won a prize money of $400,000 for finishing runner-up at the tournament. They defeated fourth seed and reigning US Open champion Erin Routliffe and Gabriela Dabrowski in the semifinals en route. She has also been showing promise on the clay courts.
The 27-year-old idolizes Serena Williams, which can be seen in her ruthless aggression on-court. She enjoys the hard and grass courts, and her favorite tournament is Wimbledon. Jelena Ostapenko's aggressive baseline approach and strong groundstrokes on the court define her playing style. She has a decent serve but enjoys dictating rallies with her vicious top-spin and down-the-line bullets. She has a go big or go home approach, which often leads to scintillating winners, but also erratic unforced errors.
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Jelena Ostapenko Grand Slam Titles
Jelena Ostapenko has two Grand Slam titles to her name - she won the French Open singles title in 2017, and US Open doubles title in 2024.
At the 2017 French Open, Louisa Chirico, Monica Puig, Lesia Tsurenko, and Samantha Stosur were all defeated by Ostapenko, who was ranked 47th in the world at the time. In the quarterfinals, she competed against Caroline Wozniacki, who she beat from a set down. Ostapenko then defeated Timea Bacsinszky in three sets in the semi-finals. Ostapenko overcame a set and a 3-0 deficit to defeat Simona Halep in the final, to earn her first major. She became the first unseeded woman to win the French Open since 1933 and the first Latvian player to triumph in a Grand Slam singles tournament.
Jelena Ostapenko also made history by becoming the first tennis player since Gustavo Kuerten to win a Grand Slam title as her first career title. Ironically, Kuerten's first career victory came at the 1997 French Open, on the day Ostapenko was born. With the victory, she rose to a new career-high position of No. 12 in the world. At the end of the 2024 season, Ostapenko won her second major - the US Open women's doubles title.
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What Are Jelena Ostapenko’s Best Grand Slam Performances?
The following are Jelena Ostapenko's best Grand Slam performances:
Singles:
Australian Open - Quarterfinals (2023)
French Open - Winner (2017)
Wimbledon - Semifinals (2018)
US Open - Quarterfinals (2023)
Doubles:
Australian Open - Final (2024)
French Open - Semifinals (2022)
Wimbledon - Semifinals (2022)
US Open - Winner (2024)
Mixed Doubles:
Australian Open - Quarterfinals (2023)
French Open - First Round (2017, 2018, 2023)
Wimbledon - Finalist (2019)
US Open - Quarterfinals (2022)
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FAQs
A. Yes, Jelena Ostapenko won the French Open singles championship in 2017, and US Open doubles title in 2024.
A. Jelena Ostapenko has won two Grand Slam titles, the French Open singles in 2017 and US Open doubles in 2024.
A. Jelena Ostapenko's best performances include winning the French Open in 2017, reaching the Wimbledon semifinals in 2018, and winning the 2024 US Open finals in doubles category.
A. Jelena Ostapenko is Latvian.
A. Jelena Ostapenko was born in Riga, Latvia on June 8, 1997.
A. Elise Mertens and Hsieh Su-wei won the 2024 women's doubles Australian Open title, defeating Jelena Ostapenko and Lyudmyla Kichenok in the final.